Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiMay 16, 2016

Jacksonville’s inspector general, Thomas Cline, announced recently his desire to leave the position at the end of May, after less than a year in the position. Thus, the “selection and retention committee” for the inspector general’s office had work to do Monday in developing a process to fill the position. After outlining a performance evaluation template to refine […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 29, 2016

At the start of the year, I made 12 predictions for 2016 in Jacksonville politics. A fourth of the way through, revisiting them is useful. Some I got right. Some I got wrong. Some are still in progress. Predictions 1 and 2 revolved around the Human Rights Ordinance expansion, which was the issue du jour. […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 19, 2016

In 2015, there was more than a little bit of local drama about the removal of Chairwoman Lisa King from the Jacksonville Planning Commission. King was bounced unceremoniously, and the man who nominated her for chairwoman, Tony Robbins, likewise was removed soon thereafter. By virtue of removing King as a Planning commissioner, she also became ineligible to […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 19, 2016

David Chapman of the Jax Daily Record broke a significant story this week: legislative confirmation of the long-awaited Lenny Curry plan to revive the Neighborhoods department. “The Neighborhoods Department will operate under Chief Administrative Officer Sam Mousa and with a re-established Housing and Community Development Division — the ‘direct link’ to city neighborhoods,” Chapman writes. Chapman’s […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 2, 2016

The funding crisis for UF Health, Jacksonville’s only Level 1 trauma hospital and safety net hospital, continues. And Jacksonville is looking to Tallahassee to resolve it. After a meeting to discuss Consolidation Task Force recommendations where much of it focused on UF Health and other public health issues, Chief of Staff Kerri Stewart noted that talks between […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 26, 2016

Tuesday, the Community Affairs Committee of the Florida Senate approved Senate Bill 1652, the Discretionary Sales Surtax bill introduced by Rob Bradley and co-sponsored by Aaron Bean. The bill has its first House committee stop scheduled for Wednesday; it still has two Senate committees to go. As the meeting soldiered toward the presentation, Jax Mayor Lenny Curry could be […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 15, 2016

As Sam Mousa walked into the Police and Fire Pension Fund building on a misty Friday morning to sell the board on the Lenny Curry plan, FloridaPolitics.com asked him his thoughts on Rick Scott not committing to support the Jacksonville mayor’s pension sales tax plan to address the unfunded actuarial liability. Mousa’s answer was typically economical, “The mayor never asked the […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 14, 2016

With the MLK Birthday Breakfast Friday calling him back to Jacksonville, Mayor Lenny Curry will wrap up his Tallahassee trip Thursday after meetings galore. One would surmise that those meetings are intended to create buy-in for his pension sales tax proposal, which some worry was advanced a bit late for this Legislative Session. Curry’s meeting schedule […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 30, 2015

In Jacksonville politics in 2015, the game changed … perhaps for good. Big money went into campaigns: over $10 million, including soft money, in the mayoral race. Close to $2 million in the sheriff’s race. And even some City Council candidates who raised close to a quarter of a million dollars did so in vain. […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 30, 2015

There’s no doubt 2015 was an amazing year in Jacksonville politics. A new mayor, 11 new members of City Council, and intrigue in Corrine Brown’s redistricting saga were among a few top-level highlights. While we have a reasonable sense of what happened in Jacksonville politics in 2015, the next question is what happens in 2016. Hence, a […]

Tag: Kerri Stewart

Jax moves to fill inspector general position again

A.G. Gancarski: So far, so good on 2016 predictions

Lenny Curry denies Lisa King another volunteer board role

Jacksonville’s Neighborhoods Department represents vision, followthrough

Funding talks between UF Health, city of Jax on hiatus

Jax pension tax bill clears Senate Community Affairs Committee

Pension Tension: PFPF pushback on Jax pension unfunded liability surtax

Lenny Curry wraps up Tallahassee junket Thursday with more pension tax meetings

A.G. Gancarski’s Top 10 stories of 2015 in Jacksonville politics

A.G. Gancarski’s 12 predictions in 2016 for Jacksonville politics